Electronic images, audio, text, and other content are widely communicated over electronic networks, such as the Internet. An owner of such content, who wishes wide distribution and/or controlled distribution, may use an electronic distributor to host and distribute the content over a network to users who agree to license the content. Alternatively, the owner may use a rights clearing service to issue licenses over a network to users, while the owner or a separate service distributes the content to the licensees. Electronic distribution and clearance services typically act as neutral marketplaces where owners contribute content and potential licensees, search for and license content. Some neutral marketplaces may provide specialized security or searching capabilities, but generally do not determine rights associated with content, structure rights data for searching based on rights as well as content attributes, determine which rights satisfy licensing terms desired by potential licensees, divide compensation among all rights holders, or participate in other aspects of an overall process for managing content over its useful lifetime. Embodiments of the invention are directed to these and other aspects.